


Gravitational Pull

by silvered_glass



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Hand Jobs, IN SPACE!, M/M, Oral Sex, set some point in the far off future, space is not as glamorous as Harry expected
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-24
Updated: 2019-07-24
Packaged: 2020-07-17 18:37:26
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19960741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silvered_glass/pseuds/silvered_glass
Summary: Harry thought working in space was going to be more glamorous. Instead, he’s covered in gravy more often than not, and the most exciting part of his day is when he puts the bins out.Also, there’s literally a planet between him and Niall now.But maybe that’s what it’ll take for them to finally get together.





	Gravitational Pull

**Author's Note:**

  * For [sarcangel](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sarcangel/gifts), [shiftylinguini](https://archiveofourown.org/users/shiftylinguini/gifts).



> For Angela and Shifty who always make me feel like I can do a thing.
> 
> Thank you to the rare pair mods for being lovely and patient and supportive.  
> Also, a massive thanks to [dearmrsawyer](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dearmrsawyer) and [TheMipstaz](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheMipstaz/pseuds/TheMipstaz).

🌖 🌖 🌖

For something that ends up involving plasma powered space shuttles and (minor) daily excursions outside of the anti-gravity shield it starts in a rather low-key way. A sandwich board. 

Harry had headed into town because he’d read on his holophone that there was a cafe on the northside doing an amazing bluecorn espresso, and Harry liked to have a least one new experience every day. But the cafe had already shut down. When he asked in at the hover-scooter repair shop next door, the person there had laughed and said that ‘some grains are just not meant to be drunk.’ Apparently they’d gone out of business within a month. 

Harry had pulled out his holophone and brought up his chat with Niall and Zayn. 

**Harry** : _People really need to open their minds to alternate sources of grain-based drinks_

 **Niall** : _Beer stout guinness vodka ale is enough for me! Speaking of see you at the pub for quiz night xx_

It hadn’t meant anything that Niall signed his message off with kisses, he did that all the time, Harry reminded himself. It wasn’t even a direct message, it could have been to Zayn after all. Not that Zayn ever really said anything in the chat, but they are the other point of their triad. And they’d be at the pub.

Harry had been considering all this when he’d walked into the sandwich board.

**🌖** **Full Moon Recruitment** **🌖**

Apply within 

for careers 

out of this world!

MoonResorts Ltd.

Harry hadn’t even paused, he’d turned and gone straight inside the office.

“So after I gave up, well, not gave up. I don’t like to use gave up as such. But, after I realigned my life-course, I thought it would be best to stop studying my teaching course, so I left university. Again.” Harry explains to Estella, the recruitment agency representative.

“So, that was a degree in Teaching, Law and Graphic Design that you started and then gave-” Harry blinks at her. “Realigned?” she finishes. 

“Yes.” Harry smiles.

Estella looks down at the holopad that Harry had filled in his questionnaire on out in reception. “You haven’t ticked any of the boxes for essential moon-side skills, no physics or medical training? They need people in horticulture desperately, you don’t have any biology in your background do you, Harry?” she sounds a little pleading almost, “a sneaky A-Level perhaps?”

“Oh! Of course, here.” Harry swipes quickly to his album and passes his holophone across the desk.

“What, what is this, Harry?”

“That's my Peace Lily, I call it Youni. Also my Asparagus Fern, he lives in the bathroom, call him Gus. I think if you go through you’ll also see Kiwi, she’s a cactus, two blooms we grew together last summer.”

“Thank you,” she says, her mouth forming a flat line and she pushes the holophone back with one extended finger.

“You have a lovely manicure,” Harry informs her and her face softens a little. She looks back down at the holopad and makes a cross on it. It’s silent in the office for a few moments. Harry’s pretty sure he’s all out of luck here. Doesn’t really have much to offer anyone after all. 

It’s okay. He’s got a job. He works at the bakery in his village. It had been a Saturday job when he was in secondary school. Then when he came back after leaving uni the first time he’d started working there again, and has never really stopped. He’s almost lost the job countless times. Mostly for giving Niall and Zayn free food. But he’s working for his Mum’s best friend, Auntie Helen, and she’s very good to him. Not his actual Auntie. But might as well be. He’s been working there seven years. Lives in a little two room flat above the bakery now as well. If he didn’t he’d probably be home with his Mum. It’s likely Auntie Helen lets him rent the rooms out because she got sick of him invading their prosecco and romantic comedy movie nights that they like to do around his Mum’s house. But that’s okay. 

Yup. It’s all okay. He doesn’t know why all of a sudden his palms are a bit sweaty and how nothing ever seems firm and graspable.

It’s just that, he’s flotsam. Directionless. Not even one direction. For about fifteen minutes, between walking into that sandwich board, filling in the holopad and being ushered into Estella’s little cubical Harry had been quietly envisaging working moon-side. There was a massive resort up there now. And they ran overnight tours to the dark side of the moon. Harry could do that. Play his moon-truck full of wide eyed tourists Pink Floyd as he guided them bravely through their voyage to the reality of the boundless universe beyond the light of the sun.

Of course you’d need to have studied some form of science to lead adventure tours on the bloody moon. Harry’s an idiot. 

Suddenly Estella’s eyes light up. “Harry! You know what, I think I might have something for you after all.”

🌖

His mum isn’t too happy when he tells her. She stops folding the washing and sits down heavily at the kitchen table.

“Oh, Harry. Love. Can you get out of the contract? I’ll get your Uncle to have a look shall I?”

Harry stops folding his clean washing. “What?”

“Well you must have changed your mind by now surely?” his mum asks. Harry isn’t sure if she sounds hopeful or resigned. The possibility that she’s resigned rankles. He hates when they think he’s flaky. 

“I leave in three weeks actually. My role has a urgent fill requirements, so we can complete the on-site training component,” Harry says primly.

“Oh, Harry.” She sighs and gets up to put the kettle on. “Did one of your friends suggest this? Is it Niall, I mean I’ll understand you going if it’s with Niall. You can tell me, love.”

Harry carefully folds his favourite blue pants into a little square. “I haven’t told Niall yet,” he mumbles.

A teaspoon clatters on the benchtop. "Harry! Did you two have a fight?”

Harry looks up at his mum. She looks even more worried than when he’d told her he was going to the moon. “What? Mum, you know Niall and I are mates right? Just mates. You’re acting like he’s ‘m boyfriend or ‘sumat.”

His mum opens her mouth, and then sighs, looks at him for a moment. Harry can feel his cheeks get a little hot and he makes a wild grab into the laundry basket pulling out an odd sock covered in little cactuses. A present from Niall with his Cactus named Kiwi two Christmases ago.

She goes back to the tea making thank goodness, but she is right though. Harry does need to tell Niall and Zayn. Also ask one of them to look after his plants. And check what he’s allowed to take to the moon with him. He hopes he can take some of his own socks.

🌖

Niall is wearing a proper business shirt. Harry knows he has a job in an office. But it’s odd sometimes, meeting him for lunch in the town centre. Niall having an allotted time he’s allowed before he needs to ‘get back.’ Harry doesn’t mind that Niall only gets forty-five to sixty minutes to spend with him though, and he gets the bus in from their little village whenever he has a week-day off from the bakery. 

Niall pauses, holding his protein allowance card just above the scanner in the sushi place. 

“Here, let me,” Harry says and knocks Niall’s hand out of the way, swiping his card twice.

“Treating me well I see, Styles. Hope you’re splashing out for the top shelf larger to go with?”

Harry wants to kiss the side of Niall’s head, maybe at his temple. Niall is bending over to look at the Nigiri.

“If you like, of course. Can you drink at lunch?”

Niall looks up, his eyes wide and a little too blue in the reflection of the neon light hanging in the shop window. “Lovely long lunch with you, Petal, have to have a drink to get through it won’t I?” he smirks and laughs.

“Yeah, yeah. I get it. Such a hassle having me buy you sushi.”

“I’ll pay,” Niall cuts in swiftly stepping up to the counter. “You used your protein points, I’ll use my currency."

They sit at a bench in the other window that faces out into the street. Harry sucks his hot little edamame beans into his mouth and watches as Niall carefully arranges his pickled ginger over his salmon.

“We should get a steak tomorrow,” Harry says.

Niall turns and looks at him confusedly. “No need for steak, save that for my birthday. Hey, did Zayn tell you they are buying a mating pair. Can you believe that? Got the paperwork approved and everything.”

“No. I mean, I won’t need my animal-protein ration for the second part of the quarter so we should go out and get a nice steak each,” Harry says.

“Are you doing meat-free May again? You lasted about a week last time didn’t you? Sarah found you eating chicken at the back of the KCF off Broad Street.” Niall is laughing again. 

“I was picking the coating off, I had low sodium levels.” Harry huffs.

“The skin, Harry. You were scoffing chicken skin. Low sodium honestly.” Niall snickers. 

“I won’t need the points because I’m going to the moon,” Harry says in a rush.

Niall is holding a plump little nigiri in front of his mouth, he cocks his head and twists to look at Harry, the nigiri slips from his chopsticks and onto the platter.

“You aren’t joking are you?” 

Harry swallows. “No.”

“What the fuck, Harry?” Niall says, he sounds upset, angry maybe. But his eyes are wide and there is something in the turn of his mouth that for a moment looks scared.

“I have a job. On the moon, they need us all trained by mid-may so we go in two weeks. Surprise.” Harry tries, weakly.

“How long have you known? You don’t just go to the fucking moon Harry, my cousin was on a short list for a year, and then had six months prep. Jaysus. How long have you been planning to run off on me?”

Harry pokes his little nub of wasabi sitting next to his sashimi.

“I’m not running off. And, honestly, only a week Niall. It just happened. It’s a funny story really—”

“Right. I’m sure it is. Can we skip to the end. What the fuck are you going to be doing on the moon? Do they need someone to work the tills in the sticky buns outlet—”

Harry cuts him off. “Actually, I’m doing tours, tours to the dark-side, overnight Tours. Did a psychological test, and fitness, they said I was very qualified. It’s not a lot of people who get to lead the tours, actually. And, I am dead excited. So yeah. Thanks for the support.” Harry spits out.

He’s not completely lying. He has had psychological and fitness tests, and he was told that he was amply qualified for his position. There also isn’t a lot of people who are selected to lead the moon-truck tours to the dark-side. Harry knows that; becuase he’s certainly not one of them.

Niall is clenching his jaw, staring straight ahead at the street. Harry does the same thing. His appetite has vanished and his eyes burn hot as if he’d eaten all his wasabi in one go.

“If it’s what you want to do, Harry, then I’m in full support,” Niall says in a horrid voice that Harry’s not heard before. “But you know, it’s not like Leeds, or Dorset, or Manchester. You can’t come home when you _change your life course_. You’re on the fucking moon.”

Harry whips around to say something back. Something hot and angry, but Niall has picked up his beer bottle and is standing to go. “Don’t, don’t even start. I have to get back to the office,” he mutters and strides through the door. 

Zayn calls him that night. They are literally the only human who use a holophone for calling. 

Harry swipes to answer and doesn’t move from his bed. 

“Move your phone so I can see your projection you dick,” Zayn’s glowing holo tells him when they appear in the middle of Harry’s room. “You’re one huge double chin and a nostril, is that how you want me to remember you by spaceman?”

“I don’t have a double chin,” Harry says but sits up quickly and picks up the phone so it can scan him and send a current projection to appear in front of Zayn. 

“So, did you hear I got approved to get a breeding pair of bovine, amazing right?”

“Yeah. Niall told me. Bloody happy for you Zayn.”

Zayn’s hologram smiles unabashedly. “I’m going to go get them in three weeks, sorry you won’t be here.”

“I am to mate. You’ll have to send me pictures.”

Zayn nods, a ghostly arm swipes through the air and they move as if they are pacing. “Harry, you need to sort stuff out with Niall before you go.”

“I’m not the one—”

Zayn stills and looks up to the ceiling. “I don’t want to hear it. Just fix it before you go.”

They must end the call, the projection shrinks and the light zaps back inside Harry’s phone.

Harry slumps back down onto his pillow. 

He sends his usual pictures of his mum’s cats to the group chat, and his favourite tart of the day (often Pear Normandy.) There’s a bit of general chatter about the footie scores, but Niall doesn’t message him privately. They’d had said they’d go to this new Andhra style restaurant on Wednesday but Niall doesn’t confirm it, so Harry doesn’t either.

On Friday when Harry closes up the bakery he climbs the stairs going up to his flat slower than he’s done before. Takes an inordinate time pulling off his apron and sweaty work clothes and eventually climbs into the little above-bath shower. He stands under the feeble water flow long after the hot water has run cold. It’s as if he’s trying to fill his night with mundane activities. Harry stretches making microwave macaroni and cheese out to forty minutes. But then he’s left with a whole evening of nothing.

He gets dressed. A soft t-shirt and a pair of nice wide legged pinstriped trousers. He combs his hair. Cleans his teeth again and walks to the pub.

Zayn and Niall are up the back. It’s not where they normally all sit, they normally sit at one of the tables in the front section of the pub. But Harry’s ordering a pint and looks across to the other side of the bar and he sees them.

Niall staring down at his pint and Zayn right up against him, their arm around Niall’s shoulder. Their face bent down close to Niall’s own, as if _they_ are about to kiss his temple. As if they are about to get Niall to turn towards them for a proper snog. 

Harry doesn’t even realise when the bar person comes back the currency interface for him to pay, he can’t move. They look lovely. Matched. Comfortable. Together. 

“Are you alright there, love?” the bar person asks. “You’ve gone a bit pale.”

Harry looks down at the pint now in front of him, and up at their friendly face. “Sorry, thought I saw someone I fancied in school. You know how it is,” he tries for a winning smile. “Sorry, here’s my currency card.”

He goes over. It’s not a big enough pub not to. Not a big enough village. Also, there’s something desperate and sinking inside him. He needs them to know he’s seen them, needs them to know that whatever he’s walked in on is something he knows about. Even while his heart is beating in his chest a horrid uneven rhythm of I’m almost gone and you couldn’t have waited just another week, he walks up to their table.

They look surprised but they don’t jump apart or anything. If anything for a moment Zayn pulls Niall into them a little closer, but then they stand up and hug Harry hello. After Niall and him exchange an odd stilted hello of their own Harry goes back to the bar and gets another round in. And then Zayn gets another. And Niall one more.

They stay longer than they have for a while. Normally if they want a big night, they’ll go into town after all. But there is a covers band who come on after the kitchen shuts. And there’s enough people in the pub from school days, and from living in the same place for twenty-five years, that they have a good night. Would be a great night but Harry’s got Niall in his peripheral version all night long. Which is something he probably always does. Just generally it’s so he can catch his eye to share a joke, or because he’s offering or being offered another round. Tonight Harry feels like he needs to watch him to make sure he doesn’t slip away. 

By the time they stumble outside Niall is sing-songy and blearily happy.

Zayn lives in the other direction. And as they’ve done every other night they’ve all been to the pub they smack a kiss to both of their cheeks and walk away, lighting a fag as they go.

Harry lets out a long held breath and wraps an arm around Niall. Pulls him close and walks in step with him down the hill. 

When they get to Niall’s place, a big old house that’s been converted into flats, Niall stops short before going up the pathway. Harry can see Niall’s little car sitting in the driveway, plugged into the building’s charging point. There’s a breeze rustling the big oak tree in the front garden and all of a sudden Harry has to blink back a tear. He looks at Niall, he’s staring up at the sky. He turns a little, still close to Harry, but moves so he’s standing right in front of him, instead of under his arm and then looks down from the sky to Harry’s face.

“Moon-man,” Niall says with the slightest slur.

Harry swallows. He’s not going to cry.

Then Niall clutches at Harry’s biceps, using them to steady himself as he stands on his tip toes and brushes a kiss against Harry’s lips.

Harry doesn’t know if he should kiss back or not.

“Niall,” he tries to say. His voice is hoarse and not more than a whisper. 

But Niall blinks wet eyes that glimmer in the street light, gives the tiniest shake of his head and turns to go inside.

🌖 🌖 🌖

Harry has gravy all over his lamé shirt and his little waistcoat thing.

“Jesus!” says Liam when the door to their accommodation slides open and Harry comes in, toeing his shoes off and undoing the elaborate bow at his neck.

“A child did something with a gravy boat that I am not sure obeyed the laws of physics,” Harry explains.

“Ahh, but that’s the thing, Harry, what is physics on the moon?” Louis says from where he’s lying on Liam’s bunk.

“I’m pretty sure physics is inescapable, Louis,” Liam says seriously, he’s in front of the mirror running a beard trimmer with a laser level over his chin. 

“Liam, you thought there was actual water on the moon for fucks sake,” Louis says and throws some balled up socks at Liam’s head.

“Shouldn’t call it a sea,” Liam mutters. Not even dodging the sock breaking his precise facial hair trimming. 

“I think it’ll rinse off, this material is so odd.” Harry mutters to himself. Louis is suddenly behind him. Somehow leaning over his shoulder even though he’s shorter than Harry.

“It’s a lot of gravy Harry,” he says seriously. His breath tickles Harry’s ear and Harry uses his shoulder to push Louis off him. 

“I’m going to have a shower _shower_ ,” he says, picking up his toiletry bag and going into the adjoining bathroom.

Louis and Liam aren’t bad to have as roommates. Louis’ sole purpose in life seems to be to annoy Liam. And to watch everything. He’s always watching. He works in the children’s activities centre. Harry is pretty sure he does it so he can play computer games all day long. Harry’s also occasionally started to wonder if Louis is an alien. 

Liam works in concierge. Nothing is too much trouble. He just likes to do things. Likes to please. Harry’s never put much store in psychological tests but he asked Liam how he got his job and Liam had explained that originally he’d qualified to come up as an entertainer and then when they gave him his evaluation they’d offered him even more money to work in the concierge. 

“Said they’d never seen anyone with such high positive attributes for customer service,” Liam had told Harry that first night. Louis had just entered the room and overheard them.

“Go on then, Liam, put away the new boy’s clothes,” Louis had said and gently pushed Harry’s little wheeled suitcase into Liam’s knees.

Harry hadn’t stopped Liam from putting it away though. He had looked so content when hanging up Harry’s metallic lamé uniform shirts that Harry hadn’t wanted to interrupt.

Harry swipes his water ration card and stands, body wash already poured into his hand, at the ready for the water to start. As he luxuriates in spreading the soap under his armpits and down his stomach to his pubes he thinks about Zayn’s bovines. They got buffalo in the end. Not cattle. Niall says they are a bit scary. Big even though still young. Niall’s moonmails are always full of Zayn. Zayn’s vegetables. Zayn’s bovines. Zayn’s farm. Zayn, Zayn, Zayn. 

Harry wonders how long it’ll be before they both tell him that they are together. He wonders if Niall remembers the kiss after that last night at the pub. 

There hadn’t been another night out. Hadn’t even been a proper goodbye, really. Harry had gone to visit his Dad, then he’d been busy packing up the little flat. He left his plants with his mum, and his stuff in boxes in her attic. He’d gone to London to see his sister and her boyfriend, and then it’d been time to fly to Sweden where the shuttle launched from.

He’d moonmailed Niall from the shuttle even. Pictures of the Earth as it fell away behind. He hadn’t said anything in the mails at first. But Niall had replied talking about how sick the pictures where, pointing out how lovely Ireland looked compared to the cold cover over England. Harry had typed out ‘Well why do you live here not there then?’ But he’d realised he didn’t live here himself any more.

So, he’d deleted that. They’d landed moon side by then. So Harry sent a picture of a moon-truck instead, and said it was his moon truck, the one he’d be leading tours on.

He’s not leading tours. He works in the buffet-carvery at the resort. Getting covered in gravy and clearing up endless plates of desecrated lobster shells. Harry’s not sure why a resort on the moon has so much all-you-can-eat-shellfish, but his is not to ask why. His is to clean tables.

It’s not all bad. He likes Louis and Liam. He gets good tips. Most customers are quite pleasant. And because of very strict duty of care towards the staff they have quite a good amount of rostered time off, great staff facilities, and they are even allowed in their down time to go to the resort bars and other facilities.

“The powers-that-be have to let us blow off some steam so we don’t go lunar,” Louis had explained three cocktails into their first night out at one of the resort bars, _Mare Nectaris_. 

Liam had started preparing for the night out by putting on his full body compression suit. The one that they wear under their space suits for longer anti-gravity exposure times.

“Liam, aren’t you coming to the bar with us?” Harry had asked. He was trying to choose between a gauzy aqua and glitter threaded blouse, and a gauzy black and glitter threaded blouse. For some reason he kept thinking about how Niall would probably like the aqua one more, and that made him want to save it. He’s not sure what for. He won't be back Earth-side for another year.

“Louis said we were going to _Mare Nectaris_ , it’s a crater isn’t it?” Liam had asked. “We are going on a surface expedition?”

Harry slipped his arm into the black shirt and shook his head. “It is a lava sea, but it’s also a bar in the resort, you know that Liam, you send guests there all the time.”

Liam had sighed and looked down at his tightly encased body. The compression suits really were a bugger to get on. 

The door had slid open and Louis strode into the room, his cry of ‘Oi-Oi’ dying on his lips as he dropped the cans of larger he was carrying on the floor.

“Holy fuck, Liam,” Louis said, sounding a bit awestruck. He’d stepped closer to Liam and poked his chest. “You look even fitter when you’re all bound up.”

“Liam’s taking not losing muscle density very seriously,” Harry had said gleefully. It was always good seeing Louis discombobulated by his own plans.

The shower beeps it’s sixty-second warning and Harry realises he’s wasted most of his washing time by daydreaming under the water. Not even a good type of daydream either.

He concentrates on getting the soap out of his hair before the water switches off.

Harry wipes the condensation off the mirror as he combs his hair through. Pauses and turns to the side. He’s getting more definition in his muscles. Or at least not losing any. Which is important, as part of coming up here staff have adhere to the _MoonResorts Ltd Health and Safety Anti-Anti-Gravity Muscle Wasting Policy_ , aka, agree to do a certain amount of weight based workouts a week and have your muscle density monitored. Again, it’s duty of care; no muscle wasting due to low gravity on MoonResorts Ltd’s watch. The gym is nice though. Harry goes with Liam a lot. Liam loves to lift weights. Harry likes boxing. It’s easy to zone out. Only think about who he’s sparing with, how they’ll move and how he’ll respond. Not allowing himself the opportunity for second guessing, just instinct and technique.

That was the first thing that made Harry wonder Louis was an alien. He never works out. But his density results are brilliant. Harry’s seen them each week, after all they are done every Monday morning automatically by the auto-refresher unit that sits in the corner of their room. And Louis loves to start the week by stripping off and loudly announcing that it’s time for his ‘fake-shower and scan.’

You don’t need to be naked in the auto-refresher unit, hence why it’s not fitted in the bathroom. The auto-refresher works on clothes, in fact it’s how they are meant to have their clothes cleaned mainly. But at some point before Harry arrived, Louis must have worked out that it provoked Liam in some way to have Louis being naked unnecessarily, so of course he insists that mentally he doesn’t feel clean unless he’s got naked.

Harry doesn’t think Liam is annoyed as such. He blushes sometimes. Sneaks looks at Louis, but more when Louis is bending over to get dressed. Harry’s pretty sure if it really upset Liam Louis would never do it. He’s quite attuned to reactions. Almost freakily so. Harry has seen him go up to comfort children who have barely begun crying, Louis moving across the room to them before they even started. 

When Harry got a moonmail from Niall full of pictures from when he and Zayn went on a road trip to the Agricultural Show two counties over, Louis had come back to the room with three types of cake and copy of Julia Roberts hologram’s latest movie. Harry had been listlessly swiping through lots of selfies of Niall and Zayn all squeezed together to fit in the frame, as well as letter full of Niall gushing about how well Zayn’s carrots had done to get second prize. But Louis had pulled Harry's holopad out of his hand, replaced it with a little box of Black-Cherry Cheesecake, and put the movie on. When Liam got in, Louis had suggested that he combed Harry's hair. Which Liam had seemed very happy to do when Harry had agreed that it sounded actually quite nice and comforting.

The next day Harry had asked Louis how he’d known Harry was sad and Louis had looked at him for a second. “I didn’t, I felt like cake, pissed at you for eating it all, actually.”

So miraculous muscle density, some sort of psychic empathy, definite alien.

Also sometimes when Louis' asleep, he shimmers and it looks like he has scales instead of skin.

Harry opens the door to go back into the room. Liam and Louis are on Liam’s bunk together watching something on Louis’ holopad. Harry hangs his towel up and puts his uniform in the laundry collection chute. 

“’Wanna get up here too?” Liam asks him.

Harry looks at them, all cosy together. Makes him miss Niall and Zayn almost palpably.

“I’m going to go for a walk,” he says. Smiles so they think he’s okay and takes his notebook and headphones with him up to the observation deck.

🌖

“Harry!” calls out Jeff who Harry has never spoken to before but who he knows is his bosses’ manager’s manager, and who is now walking over to where Harry has just finished cleaning the warmed sauce section of the buffet.

“Hello, I’m Harry,” Harry says and holds out his hand. He really hopes its not got any gravy on it.

Jeff is looking a little confused. “Yes, I know.”

“Of course, you said my name before. Um.” 

“How are you liking the moon, Harry?”

“It’s got more a lot more mushroom pepper sauce than I pictured.”

Jeff looks at the sauces. “Yes, me too.”

“Very lucky to be here,” Harry tries. He’s really not sure what he’s meant to say.

“We are looking for management program recruits, are you interested? I’d like to invite you to a seminar.”

“Oh, a seminar,” Harry says, attempting to sound interested. 

Jeff laughs then. “Didn’t think there’d be seminars on the moon either?”

Harry grins, makes a sort of nod of acknowledgement. 

“What did you think there’d be?” Jeff asks, he sounds genuinely curious.

“Um, moonwalks?”

Jeff nods. “Fair enough.”

Jeff talks to him a little longer, asks Harry what he's looking forward to, Harry tells him it's karaoke night next week, which leads into a conversation about their favourite bands, which somehow leads to a chat about apple-pie, which leads to a longer conversation about their favourite bands. In the end Harry has to apologise and go back to work as the lunch crowd trickles in. Jeff asks him to consider attending the seminar and sends an invitation to his schedule. 

When Harry shows up to his next shift, Jade, his manager tells him he's been given a promotion, and that accordingly he is being trained in how to take out the rubbish.

🌖

Harry wakes up on the second Wednesday of his third month on the moon to the sound of Niall’s voice. 

So not awake. Dreaming of Niall again.

Harry rolls over so he’s facing the wall. Last time he dreamt of Niall had to have a wank as soon as he woke up. It’d been okay, Louis and Liam had both been on shift so Harry had kept his eyes shut and pretended Niall and him were up in Harry’s little bread scented flat. 

It’s easy to picture that again. Niall’s hair sleep tousled and his eyes slowly smiling awake. Their hands wrapped around each other in the early morning. Quick hand jobs before Harry would have to get up to open the bakery. Harry would leave the coffee warm for Niall to have when he’d get out of bed an hour or so later. And when Niall came through the bakery on his way out to his little car Harry would have a different muffin or scone ready for him each day...

Hmm, this morning’s fantasy seemed a lot more domestic than usual. Normally his wanks don’t feature so many dough related thoughts. Also a lot less of Louis’ voice.

Harry rolls back over and peers at the bunk across the room. 

“So we’ve got heaps of room, you should come up and stay here, we can sneak you both into staff accommodation no trouble.”

Harry sits up so quickly he bumps his head on the top bunk. 

“Fuck!”

“Oh, here’s happy-in-the-morning Harry now,” Louis trilled. 

Harry shoots him a look of death. “What the fuck is going on?” he grumbles, swinging his legs over the edge of his bunk and looking at the commoonication device in Louis’ hand.

Holophones and such don’t work on the moon, hence moonmail, and for actual conversations you have to use a commoonications device. They were bloody expensive though, so moonmail sufficed usually. 

Louis swings the commoonication around so the screen was facing Harry, and there was Niall. 

His hair is longer, looks tousled. His eyes are a little sleepy maybe. He’s in one of his work shirts, top few buttons undone like he’d been at the pub. A beautiful slightly rumpled version of Niall.

“Wow,” Niall says.

“Oh,” Harry says at the same time. Then he starts to smile, can’t not. He stands up and grabs the comm from Louis’ hands and spins neatly out of his reach into the bathroom, locking the door behind him. 

“It’s good to see you,” Harry says. “Fuck, miss you, Niall. How are you?”

Niall is rubbing the side of his nose. “Miss you too, Harry,” he says finally. “Forgot a little how you look or something.” 

Harry looks down. He’s not got any pants on. Realises that when he got home from his shift last night he’d dropped his uniform, trousers, pants and all, on the floor and fallen into bed.

Harry feels his cheeks go a little pink. 

Niall clears his throat. “So, Zayn won a prize from a packet of seeds.”

Harry nods. “Of course, he did,” he answers seriously. Niall smiles in response. A proper smile, one of the ones where is nose scrunches up a little on the left. Harry feels like he might cry. Fuck he loves him. He loves Niall.

“So, I am pretty freaked out about the idea of the shuttle but Zayn is fucking insistent about coming up and about me coming too so we are.”

“Wait, what?”

“I said, Zayn won a shuttle trip up and we’re coming. It’s not all inclusive, we are meant to pay for accommodation, it’s a bit of a shit prize actually. Don’t really understand that. But you mentioned you had the spare bunk in the room, and Zayn said tonight at the pub that when I got in I had to call you to ask if we could come and stay, so that's what I was doing. Your roommate seems nice. Asked some odd questions. I like that.”

“Don’t tell Louis anything,” Harry says automatically, trying to process. Niall, Zayn, coming here. Niall. Here on the moon. Niall. He loves Niall.

“You can take us out in your moon-truck,” Niall says. He sounds unsure. Worried. Harry’s been silent way too long.

“Brilliant. Fucking brilliant.” Harry says. His heart is racing. He loves Niall. Niall is coming here.

“Wait, you didn’t go home with Zayn?” Harry asks.

Niall raises an eyebrow. “What?”

“From the pub, you’re not living together or…” Harry tails off. Niall is looking very confused. “Oh. Okay. Good,” Harry says.

“Wait, did you think me and Zayn had been fucking?”

Harry shakes his head.

“You’re an eejit, Harry Styles.”

Harry nods.

“When are you coming up?” he asks to try to change the subject.

“I’ll have to check with Zayn, I can take holiday leave anytime from work really, so just depends on when is best for them to leave the farm.”

The comms starts to crackle. And Harry realises it must be costing Niall a fucking fortune. He says he’ll moonmail him as soon as he can and they end the connection. 

Harry does a piss and washes his hands and inspects a spot on his forehead and by the time he opens the door, he feels a little more ready to face Louis.

Louis is up in Liam’s bunk, he’s sitting up against a pile of pillows calmly sipping a hydration packet and looking at him cautiously.

“So you realised you’re in love him did you?” Louis says.

Harry narrows his eyes and crosses his arms over his chest. “Why are you in Liam’s bunk?”

“Going to fart on his pillows.”

Harry steps in to the auto-refresher and holds his arms out waiting for the sensors to beep on.

“How do you know I realised?” Harry asks.

Louis makes an odd noise. High pitched but throaty. Harry looks over in alarm but he’s still sitting calmly as he was before.

“Just a guess based on the way you ran off to be alone with your boyfriend.” Louis waggles his eyebrows.

Harry’s sure that’s not it. Louis is an alien he’s certain. That noise was not a human one.

He lets it go though. Niall is coming. Niall, who he loves. 

That afternoon Harry sends a moonmail to Zayn, saying that he’s happy to hear about the back of a seed packet win of a trip to the moon, and that Harry can’t wait for Zayn and Niall to come and stay, and what kind of seed has moon related promotions anyway, but who cares really about their disjointed marketing Harry is just happy that they will both be coming to visit. Harry almost tells him about his rubbish-related promotion, but realises he’d have to admit that he wasn’t leading tours. Which then makes him realise that he’ll have to admit that when they come up anyway. 

Harry sends the mail and asks Liam if he wants to go to the gym. He needs some peaceful thoughtless meditative punching of a large hanging bag.

🌖

Harry wasn’t going to go to the management seminar. But then Liam cuts his lip on the straw of his protein hydration shake.

“What the fuck?” says Louis, sitting straight up in bed as soon as Harry and Liam come back into the room.

“Morning, Louis,” Harry says happily. It’s two weeks till Niall and Zayn’s shuttle comes out. He’s got butterflies constantly already.

“Who hurt you, Liam?”

Harry and Liam look at each other and then at Louis, who’s very suddenly out of bed and standing directly in front of Liam looking up at his lip very closely. 

Harry drops his boxing gloves on his own bunk and starts edging towards the door.

“Weren’t you just totally asleep?” Liam asks Louis.

“You are cut, I woke up. Going to kiss it better,” Louis says. 

And yup. Harry just manages to make it to the door by the time that starts.

So Harry goes to the management meeting in his gym gear. He hopes Jeff and other boss people don’t think it’s some sort of anarchical snub or something. Hopefully they will see it as him adhering strictly to Health and Safety Anti-Anti-Gravity Muscle Wasting Policy, ready to gym at any moment. 

Harry stays seated at the end of the seminar. He’s trying to decide if an hour and half will have been enough time for Louis and Liam to have done whatever healing Louis has deemed Liam required. Jeff sits down next to him.

“You came,” he says.

Harry smiles politely, “I did. Didn’t fall asleep either,” he quips, and freezes. Probably not a good idea to imply that it was the type of event that would have sent a person to sleep, directly to the man who spoke for half the time. 

Jeff laughs though. “So you want to be a manager?” 

Harry shakes his head. “I don’t think so.

“How’s the rubbish going?” Jeff asks.

Harry relaxes into a full smile. “Yeah, yeah I love it.”

Jeff nods and looks satisfied. “Good, well, I think we should send you on a dark-side tour for a shadow trip, might be a month or so before we can arrange it, but I’ll send an invitation to your schedule when we can.”

And with that Jeff gets up and moves to talk to a lady at the front of the room.

🌖

Harry’s carrying four dirty plates and he’s got cheese sauce all over his front when Niall, Zayn, Louis, and Liam walk into the buffet dining room. Harry doesn’t drop his plates. He does turn on the spot and start walking back the way he came. And, almost into Jade who’s walking right behind him with her own stack of filthy crockery.

“Watch it, Styles!” she hisses as she sidesteps him cleanly. “Hello attractive people, please move out of the way.” he hears her say to his friends.

Harry turns around. “Hello attractive people,” he says and pastes on a smile. 

“Harry, what is that?” Zayn asks, horrified. They are staring at his chest with a look of disgust.

“I quite like it, lamé is actually very versatile,” Harry says, his eyes drifting to Niall and back to Zayn. Niall looks a little pale. They are early. Their shuttle wasn’t due for another two hours. 

“Think he means that jizz on your waistcoat, lad,” Louis says, thrilled.

“It’s cheese sauce. Self-service liquids in a lowered gravity environment are no one’s friend.” Harry looks back to Niall. He’s looking at him. Fuck. He looks lovely. Bit of a beard, blue eyes. Like Niall. Harry swallows.

“I’m um, I’m just helping out here, I’ll be free in a little bit, you must have got in really early, glad Louis and Liam could get you,” Harry babbles.

“We’ll give ‘em a tour, nothing to worry about, Harry,” Liam says. And Harry should be grateful. But he wants to give them a tour. He wants to take Niall to the observation deck. Show them the pool and how amazing low-gravity bombs into the water are.”

“Ping us when you’ve done your shift and washed the jizz off,” Louis says with a grin and turns to go. Zayn and Liam turn with him but Niall stays still.

“I’m going to have a bite to eat,” Niall says. 

Zayn looks between them both and rubs his nose with his forefinger. “You should try the lobster, I’ve heard moon lobster is amazing.”

“I can show you to a seat,” Harry offers.

Niall smiles then, “No need posho, it’s a buffet isn’t it? I can find ‘me way around a buffet.”

Harry smiles. Has to bite his lip a moment to try to not be smiling _too_ much. It’s just very good to see Niall. And hear his voice, and have him call him posh, and Harry wants to hug him. But Harry’s still holding a pile of plates and he’s covered in white sauce.

“You’re on the moon,” Harry tells Niall quietly. 

Niall smiles. “You should see the playlists I’ve made for this holiday.”

Harry works the rest of his shift with one eye always on Niall, who sits at a table near the bank of windows that line the dining room. He does try the lobster, but also a lot of plain steamed vegetables. Harry wonders if his stomach is okay. Harry takes him a lightly sparkling hydration beverage.

Jade tells Harry he can finish up early, and he doesn’t hesitate to pull off his dirty waistcoat and slip into the chair next to Niall. Their knees bang together under the table. 

“Did you enjoy the lobster?”

“Mmm, why so much shellfish on the moon?”

“I think it’s to do with water filtration, but I am not sure,” Harry says.

“That sounds not at all correct.”

It’s silent for a moment. Harry wonders if Niall’s beard is soft or would prickle if he kissed him.

“Niall—”

“I’m sorry Harry,” Niall says speaking at the same time. “I’m sorry about what happened before you left.”

Harry takes a staggered breath. Niall remembers. Niall remembers kissing him and Niall regrets it. He’s sorry.

“I shouldn’t have shut down, I should have had those last days with you. That Indian place, I go past it all the time, always think I should have had fucking dinner with you.” Niall is rubbing his finger on the table cloth. It’s making a little scratching noise as his nail runs over the fabric.

“Oh,” Harry says eloquently. “I thought you meant us, after the pub.”

Niall looks up at him quickly and licks his lips before his eyes dart away.

Harry stores it all. Allows it to settle over him. Niall regretting time _not_ spent together.

“How long have you been a waiter for?” Niall asks.

“Since I got here. Never was a tour operator. Always a waiter.”

Niall folds his lips over. “Yeah. You pissed off to the moon to be a waiter.”

Harry can’t tell what’s happening. Niall’s pissed off again. He toys with the long hanging ribbon from the bow around his neck. “I just did it on a whim.”

“Harry,” Niall’s voice breaks. 

Harry looks up at him wide eyed.

“You think I don’t know that? You think I haven’t been there for all of it? You think it doesn’t fuck me up waiting for—” he breaks off pinching the bridge of his nose and looks up to the ceiling. 

“Waiting for what, Niall?” Harry asks quietly.

Niall’s jaw ticks and he stares out the window at the moonscape. “Waiting for you to stop searching for something else.”

Harry goes to say something but isn’t sure what to say. He wants to apologise. But also, he just didn’t know. He didn’t know it was okay to want Niall the way he did, the way he had for so long. So of course, he looked for reasons to go somewhere else, be someone else.

They sit in silence for a minute of two. Niall takes a long drink. Harry wants to each out and hold his hand, wants to say something to break the tension. He knows how much Niall hates fights. He can hear him scratching at the tablecloth again. But Harry really doesn’t want to speak too soon. He needs to be sure.

“Want to put the rubbish out with me?” Harry asks finally.

Niall eyes up the suit with a raised eyebrow and a shake of his head. “Nup, is that clean? Nup.”

“It’s fine, they get put through the auto-refresher after each use.” Harry is already climbing into his, no need for compression suits, they aren’t going out for long enough.

He helps Niall step into his. Straps the top on and then Harry click twists his helmet on before checking Niall’s.

“Shit. I should have pissed before this,” Niall says.

“Just go in the suit, that’s what we all do,” Harry deadpans.

Niall looks at him horrified until Harry starts cackling. 

It’s slow really. Going into the airlock, clipping into the line that goes along the edge of the building. Harry turns to look at Niall. He’s pale and lovely.

“You okay?” Harry asks.

“Yeah, nervous, but good. Fuck. I’m about to walk on the fucking moon.”

Harry ducks his head down, bangs the outside of his helmet on Niall’s and pulls back, bright red.

“Oh god.”

Niall starts laughing. Harry joins in.

“Well, at least outside my place, drunk and calling you moonman isn’t the most embarrassing almost kiss we’ve had.” Niall smiles so wide. 

“You _do_ remember.” Harry sighs. “Also, that night _was_ a kiss. This, I don’t know. I’m all emotional before a moonwalk.”

“You normally get the shift from someone before you put the rubbish out?”

Harry shakes his head. “Normally on my own aren’t I.”

“Well you can tell me about what you do on your own when we’re out of the suits,” Niall says with an eyebrow raise that shouldn’t be as hot as it is.

Harry takes a deep breath and flips his visor shut and pressing the lock. He makes sure Niall’s is secure, double checks their connection to the safety line and tests their comms.

Niall’s answering voice is crackly but perfect in his ear.

🌖

Niall holds Harry’s hand as they walk back to staff accommodation. Harry’s a little worried that it might make them a bit conspicuous. But no one pays them any heed. When the door slides open the room is empty. Zayn and Niall’s suitcases in a corner of the room, but there is no sign of the others.

“I’m going to have a shower,” Harry says to Niall.

Niall nods. “Okay. Can we,” he swallows. “I was thinking maybe.”

Harry steps in closer, brackets Niall up against the foot of the bunk. “Tell me?”

“Yeah, thinking that,” Niall says as if this explains it all. It does really. It’s enough.

Harry kisses him nice and slow. Hesitant at first. He’s not sure what Niall wants. What he’ll need. Niall parts his lips without any pause though. It’s a little messy at first. There is a tooth bump at one stage, and they smile against each other’s lips. Niall kisses him soft after that. Once, twice and then the third time open-mouthed and dirty. Harry slips his hand under Niall’s t-shirt and wraps it around his hip.

They kiss for long enough that Niall starts to make a needy noise when Harry pulls off to breathe. So Harry kisses him again, slides his tongue against Niall’s and fits his other hand under the curve of his arse. Niall makes another lovely little noise and Harry presses impossibly closer into his body. Moves against him as he starts to kiss down his neck.

Niall smells fresh somehow. Smells of Niall, and some sort of spicy cologne. Harry drags his teeth where the soft skin of Niall’s neck meets his scruff. Sucks a little mark there.

“Harry, Harry,” Niall says a little breathlessly.

Harry pulls off to look at him. Niall’s eyes are lovely and dark, “What do you want?” Harry asks him.

“I don’t know, but is the door locked?”

Harry looks at the door. It is, but also Liam or Louis could open it. “Come in the bathroom?”

Niall nods. Harry grabs his toiletry bag and all the four towels he has in his stash. When the bathroom door is shut behind them, he holds up his water ration card.

“Going to use my month’s allocation up in one go and not regret a moment,”

“What is that?” Niall asks, he’s standing awkwardly in the middle of the space.

“My water ration card,” Harry says stepping up to him and kissing him again. When they kiss this time it’s different. Niall pushes Harry back against the sink counter. He kisses him deep and dirty, Harry can feel himself getting a little lost in it. He gets his hands up under Niall’s shirt again, Niall’s back is warm and skin smooth under his palms. Harry settles on the counter properly and gets his leg between Niall’s.

“How do I get this off ‘ya?” Niall asks pulling at Harry’s lame shirt. Harry can’t bear to take both his hands away from Niall, so he leans back and pulls at the bow with one hand. Niall works at the buttons and Harry takes that as a chance to bend down and kiss Niall’s neck again.

When the shirt is undone Harry pulls it free and lets it drop to the floor. He reaches for the hem of Niall’s t-shirt and pulls it over his head.

“I love your hair this length,” Harry tells him stretching his neck for a kiss.

Niall touches him sweetly. Runs his hands up Harry’s chest and wraps his arms around his shoulders. Harry really wants to get to touch Niall. His chest has a lovely covering of hair and he’s just all there and available. But it’s also damn good to have him kissing him this way. Slick and hot and needy. Rutting against Harry’s leg as he lets Harry make a mark in the soft hollow of his neck under his ear.

Harry pulls off and looks at that. The hard line of Niall’s dick in his trousers. Fuck.

“Can I?” Harry asks, and touches his right hand to Niall’s trouser button.

“Ye-ah,” Niall breathes.

Harry makes short work of his fly. Niall’s cock is pressed against his pants, a thick outline with dampness staining through the material. Harry’s mouth waters.

He runs his thumb up the length of Niall’s dick, makes a circle over the head.

“Get me off,” Niall says with a groan. “Use your hand, get me off.”

“Fuck. Okay,” Harry agrees.

He pulls Niall’s pants down enough that his cock is free. Pink and heavy, Harry licks the palm of his hand and then wraps it around Niall’s length. The angle is a little awkward, but Harry will put up with a lot to be able to keep making Niall make the little gasps he’s making.

Harry captures his mouth again, it’s mostly just panting against each other. Niall’s holding onto Harry’s shoulder and thrusting into Harry’s hand as much as Harry’s working him over.

“Thought about my hands Niall? Have you? I’ve thought about this so much, used to imagine us under the blankets, even in secondary.”

“Filthy bastard,” Niall gasps out. Harry can feel him smiling against his lips.

“Thought about pushing up against the wall at your twenty-first and sucking you off, never going to forget those jeans you wore that night,” Harry says. Bites softly at Niall’s jaw, beard and everything.

“Fuck Harry, Harry.” Niall whines and comes, shaking and hot and messy in Harry’s hand. Harry kisses his mouth and the side of his face and slowly works him through the aftershocks, draws each delicious full body reaction out of him for as long as he can.

Niall looks up, breathing a deep breath. He’s pink cheeked and sweaty, Harry is too he knows.

“Your hand is filthy, I’ll undo your trousers, shall I?” Niall says roguishly. He’s bloody cheeky after an orgasm. Harry’s uncomfortably hard in his pants and trousers and his hand is messy with come and he would be happy with just one or two strokes of Niall’s hand. But Niall drops to his knees and undoes Harry’s uniform trousers with none of the difficulty Harry’s shirt had seemed to be.

Harry’s not sure why it’s surprising how fucking good Niall is at sucking cock. It might be that Harry’s never allowed himself to think about if Niall would be good at it or not. Dangerous territory.

He is good. Doesn’t take him deep in his mouth but works him over in a perfect combination of hands and mouth. Wet and slick. Niall uses his tongue to play with the head of Harry’s dick a lot. And Jesus, that is exactly what Harry likes; likes to see Niall cupping Harry’s balls and licking at the head of his cock. Niall seems to know he’s good as well. He looks up at Harry, eyes glistening and happy. It makes Harry even more turned on. The idea of just having fun. Getting off, making Niall feel good, but it still being them. Harry moans a little as Niall redoubles his efforts, takes Harry’s dick a little deeper until he hits the back of his mouth.

“I won’t last,” Harry confesses.

“Don’t,” Niall says. He licks over Harry’s slit and sucks over the sensitive head repeatedly, his other hand playing with Harry’s balls.

Harry slips his clean hand into Niall’s hair, clutches at his head while he groans loudly and feels his legs almost give way. He comes in Niall’s mouth, and then on Niall’s chin when Niall pulls off, and then in his own hand as he sinks to his knees. Laughing through his orgasm all the while.

“Fuck, fuck, _fuck_!” Harry repeats to Niall like a prayer and kisses him hard on the mouth, breathless and filthy.

“So glad we can get in the shower,” Niall says, but he doesn’t straight away. He smiles all soft and rumpled and happy and leans forward to kiss Harry again.

🌖

They have dinner with the others at the ‘Authentic 1969 Moon Landing Canteen’ themed restaurant.

“So little packets of mushed beef with vegetables that we heat up in hot water?” Niall asked the table before they were brought their menus.

“It’s a diner, do a brilliant fried chicken burger,” Liam says brightly.

“You’re off the clock, love,” Louis says smiling affectionately at him.

“I know, but I’ve never had friends to visit, makes giving information and helping out even better than usual.”

“You are an odd creature,” Louis says with a wink.

A waitress comes and takes a drinks order and leaves menus.

“I’m having steak.” Zayn says, “Going to eat my weight in animal-based protein this fortnight.”

“Oh, I don’t miss protein cards,” Liam says sympathetically.

Niall makes a disgruntled noise. “Better than water restrictions, Harry and I had a shower and it beeped after—”

Niall is interrupted simultaneously by three voices.

“Harry and you?”

“You two did what?”

“Together?”

The waitress arrives back with their drinks and Niall very quickly helps her to distribute these around. Harry lets his hand drop to Niall’s thigh under the table and squeezes it.

Louis pulls out a flask. “Let’s make these a bit spicy and cheers to these two idiots getting their shit together."

"Finally," Zayn says and smiles at them both.

Dinner is lovely. Harry can’t remember what he orders. But he has his hand on Niall’s leg the whole time. And whatever was in Louis’ little flask was potent and warming. He remembers at one stage Zayn and Louis talking about root vegetable cultivation. Harry’s sure that Zayn said that Louis should come and stay at the farm, and Harry’s even more sure that Louis had looked thoughtful and then replied that he might just do that as he hadn’t been to Earth before.

But when he asks Niall as they wait after dinner, just the two of them, for the lift to go up to the observation deck, Niall says he doesn’t remember it at all.

It’s very quiet on the observation deck late at night. Harry takes Niall to the chairs in the far corner, pulls the cushions off and lays them down on the floor, so they are looking directly out at the universe.

“We could go star watching at home you know,” Niall says. There’s no heat in it.

“I know.” Harry lets it hang in the air before saying, “I’m sorry Niall. You’re right what you said in the restaurant. I sort of go for things, don’t consider how it might make other people feel.”

Niall is quiet for a little before he asks, “Why’s that then?” He's tapping out a rhythm on his chest, staring upwards still.

“Don’t know. I know with you, I didn’t really think that we’d ever not be friends, but that also meant that I didn’t ever think that we’d be _more_ than friends. I didn’t let it be a consideration.”

Niall is quiet for a little bit. Harry concentrates on his breathing, finds it naturally syncs up with Niall’s which is calming and lovely. Lying next to him, staring at the vastness.

“Thank you for saying you're sorry, Harry. I sometimes think I always stayed at the village, because I always hoped you’d keep coming back, and that one day it’d stick. And, then one day after that I’d get brave enough to tell you how I felt. I got pissed that you signed up to come up here, because it just meant that nothing had changed. You still put being places that weren’t with me first. I was still not something that you considered.”

“ _Am_ I allowed to?”

“What are you asking, Harry?” Niall asks, Harry can hear he’s smiling in voice.

“Am I allowed to consider us an _us_?”

Niall rolls over. “Yeah. I hope so. Think maybe it’s time I left the village though. I’m going sick thinking about yourself up here. Was thinking about seeing if I could get a job up here too maybe. Depends what you thought.”

Harry takes a sudden breath. "I wouldn't ask you to Niall."

"I know. I want to do something too though, always fancied being a tour leader," he says gleefully.

“Dick head." Harry laughs. "Hey, we'll be space boyfriends,” Harry says smiling.

“ _Jaysus_.” Niall rolls back over, laughing. “ _Feckin_ fuck, yes. You idiot," he sounds so fond it makes Harry all swollen. "Space boyfriends.”

🌖 🌖 🌖

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading. I'm [silveredsound](https://silveredsound.tumblr.com/post/186522972820/gravitational-pull-by-silveredglass-a-gift-for) on tumblr if you'd like to chat.  
> This fic must live here and here alone.  
> (also for those playing along from [these tags](https://silveredsound.tumblr.com/post/186097383890/thedailystyles-052918-photographed-by-manuela); I realise I owe you a ot5 anti-gravity space orgy. It's going to be a thing.)


End file.
